Mexico weekly ledger., 1887-03-17
PLEASANT TRIP TO FLORIDA.
Graphic De criDtiOn OF the State and
Its Numerous Orange GrOves-A
Visit to the Oldest Town In
the United States.

only OF TloIiua, us tlie eifentHs
trip, via st. LOUIS, Nashville. Tenn,
and Birmingham, Ala. would be of
little interest but to few.
Our first stop was at Pensacola,
Fla, and although this is quite a
pretty city, the first feeling expert
enced by any Northerner is one OF
disgust, for two reasons-sand and
oxen. OF sand there is an abun-
dance, but while we pity them be-
cause of it, they have similar feel
ing for US because of our heavy,
sticky muds, which of course their
sandy soil never makes.
The horses of Pensacola ale infer
ior and oxen are used by the poorer
classes much more than horses, and
so long as Pensacola's streets are FL.
led with these slow-going, slouchy
outfits, she will never be the pretty
city she would otherwise be, nor at.
tractive to people of taste and energy
from the North, who have been used
to so much better.
Her principal business is the ship
ment of fish, oysters and lumber.
From Pensacola to Jacksonville
we passed through continuous
stretch of almost unbroken pine for
ests, sparsely settled and compara-
lively uninteresting, because of its
''sameness.'
We made but one stop on this
trip-at Chipley-where We took
hacks to st. Andrews Bay. This
place has been much advertised by
the Cincinnati company controlling it
The bay is beautiful sheet of
water and abounds with fish and
oysters. The water is very clear,
and l never saw finer oysters than We
gathered there, while sailing on the
bay. The red-snapper-considered
one of the finest salt water fish
known-is found in abundance, just
outside the bay, in the Gulf of Mexi-
CO.
The soil at st. Andrews is only
fair. The town is as yet very small
but should they ever have a railroad,
it would probably develop into fail
fish, oyster and lumber market.
Until there is some improved meth
cd of reaching the place it cannot
hope to improve. The trip there and
back, as il now has to be made from
Chipley, is simply horrible.
The great fault of the company ad'
vertising this place, is in leading
their purchasers to suppose that These
lots, ETC., are in or near the town
and "by the sea- while they are, il
fact, from 2 to 5 miles back from The
"town" and "sea," in the heart Of
the pine woods.
Reaching Jacksonville, the metrop
oils of Florida, we found beautiful
city on the banks of the st. John:
river The oxen and carts have dis
appeared and the streets are fillet
with nice horses and carriages.
The buildings, as class, are good
some of them quite fine, and appar
emily large business is done. He
wharfs are crowded with steamers TO
all points on the Atlantic coast an.
the st. Johns river, and they are con
stantly arriving and departing.
But Jacksonville is we'll known t,
all, as 1t is visited by all who visi
Florida, so we will take steame
up the St. Johns rlver(up is south o.
this river) to Tocoi, taking car
across from there to St. Augustine
the oldest town in the United States
And queer, quaint old city it is
| The narrow streets, only from 10 t
20 feet wide--t.,e old Spanish house
with their overhanging porches-th
old city gates with part Of the oil
city wail--the old sea wall, built frou
coquina(a shell stone)-the old Span
ish slave mart in the plaza-the oil
cathedral with it's bells, its sun dia
and its queer old pipe organ-the oil
Spanish fort in which 300 Indian
are now kept confined. In fact,
St. Augustine everything is old, ever,
thing is Spanish ami everything is il
terestiDg.
One can hardly realize that the
, are in the U. S. while exploring the.
, old building. No description coul
t picture it properly. One must st
3 it to understand and appreciate tt
''quaintness" of things.
From st. Augustin to Palatka-
1ourishing city on the st. Johns
> thence up the Ocklawaha river
Silver Springs-a trip never to
forgotten.
The Ocklawaha is the narrowe
: and crookedest river in the wor
. that is navigated by steamboats, al
5 these are built specially for th
. river.
D Here the alligators are first see
occasional groups of palm trees a
passed and at night, when the hea
light of pine knots on top of the pill
: house Is lighted, everything loo
: wierd and Lovel. The last ten mil
Silver Springs runs ma
through water clear as crystal, al
fish of all kinds can be plainly see
swimming lazily around from 10
e so feet below the boat At I;